Humor, stress, and coping strategies

MILLICENT H. ABEL

Abstract
This study explored relationships between sense of humor, stress, and
coping strategies. Undergraduate students (N=258) from introductory
psychology courses completed a perceived stress scale, an everyday problems
scale, a state anxiety inventory, a sense of humor scale, and a scale assessing
their preferred coping strategies. High and low sense of humor groups were
determined by selecting participants with self-reported sense of humor at
one standard deviation above and below the overall mean on the sense of
humor scale. The high sense of humor group appraised less stress and
reported less current anxiety than a low sense of humor group despite
experiencing a similar number of everyday problems in the previous two
months. The high humor group was more likely to use positive reappraisal
and problem-solving coping strategies than the low humor group. A weaker
relationship existed between appraisal of stress and number of problems
in the low humor group because this group perceived greater stress at low
and average number of everyday problems than the high humor group.
The results were discussed as supporting the role of humor in restructuring
a situation so it is less stressful, and the relationship of humor to both
emotion-focused and problem-focused coping strategies.

Numerous studies have supported the anecdotal view that humor and
laughter are therapeutic for relieving tension and anxiety (Kuiper and
Martin 1998; Lefcourt et al. 1995; Moran 1996; Moran and Massan 1999;
Yovetich et al. 1990). Whereas stress is linked to psychological distress
(Gillis 1992; Spielberger 1979), humor appears to buer an individual
against the negative eects of stress (Abel 1998; Labbott et al. 1990;
Humor 154 (2002), 365 381

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366 M. H. Abel
Martin and Dobbin 1988; Martin and Lefcourt 1983). Furthermore,
research reveals that a good sense of humor is related to muscle
relaxation, control of pain and discomfort, positive mood states, and
overall psychological health including a healthy self-concept (Deaner
and McConatha 1993; Hudak et al. 1991; Kuiper and Martin 1993;
Kuiper et al.1992; Kuiper et al. 1995; Labbott et al. 1990; Martin et al.
1993; Overholser 1991; Prerost and Ruma 1987; Ruch and Kohler 1998;
Thorson et al. 1997). The positive eects of humor may be explained
by the role of humor in the cognitive appraisal of threatening, hence
stressful, situations and its function as a coping strategy in general.
Kuiper and Martin (1998: 162) propose, the stress-moderating eects
of sense of humor appear to operate, at least in part, through more
positive appraisals and more realistic cognitive processing of environmental information. According to Kuiper et al. (1995) and Lefcourt and
Thomas (1998), further studies are needed to address the lack of research
on humor and cognitive appraisal. Therefore, this study was designed to
address this need by examining relationships between humor, stress and
its related constructs, and coping strategies.
Humor has been described as producing a cognitive-aective shift
or a restructuring of the situation so that it is less threatening, with
a concomitant release of emotion associated with the perceived threat
(Dixon 1980; Martin et al. 1993) and reduction in physiological arousal
(Shurcli 1968). Humor may thus aord the opportunity for exploring
cognitive alternatives in response to stressful situations and reducing
the negative aective consequences of a real or perceived threat. The
cognitive-aective shift is related to the transactional model of stress
proposed by Lazarus and his colleagues. According to this model, stress
depends upon a persons cognitive appraisal of events and circumstances and the ability to cope, the end result of the persons transaction
with the environment (Lazarus and Folkman 1984). Personality variables
such as hardiness, have been oered for explaining individual dierences
in the cognitive appraisal of novel and threatening situations and consequent reactions (Lazarus 1993). McCrae (1990) also highlighted the
inuence of neuroticism, a personality trait predisposing an individual
toward experiencing negative aect, another characteristic potentially
inuencing an individuals appraisal of stress. Kuiper et al. (1995)
proposed that a sense of humor is an additional individual dierence
variable worthy of consideration primarily because of its relationship
to positive appraisals of challenge in lieu of threat.

Humor, stress, and coping strategies

367

Several studies have examined the inuence of humor on cognitive

appraisal (Kuiper et al. 1993; Kuiper et al. 1995). The results of Kuipers
et al. study (1993) suggest that a better sense of humor does facilitate
more positive cognitive appraisals. They found a positive relationship
between use of humor as a coping mechanism and appraisal of exams as
challenging in a sample of college students and concluded that humor
is associated with healthier coping by reappraising stressful events as
less threatening and more challenging (Kuiper et al. 1993). Kuipers et al.
(1993) conclusions were further supported when Kuiper et al. (1995)
found that individuals with a high sense of humor changed their
perspective when coping with negative life events by viewing these
events more positively than those with a low sense of humor. Kuiper et al.
(1995: 370) thus proposed that an increased sense of humor does
help the individual deal in a more positive and growth-oriented fashion
with a variety of life circumstances and situations. Furthermore,
Kuiper et al. (1995) concluded that in addition to humor promoting
more positive perceptions, humor can increase the likelihood of conscious
eorts at seeking alternative perspectives to problems, emotionally
distance the individual from the stress, and hence, reduce the experience
of negative aect.
Additional studies supported Kuipers et al. (1995) suggestions.
Newman and Stone (1996) found that men with a good sense of
humor appraised a serious video of an industrial accident as less stressful
than those with a poor sense of humor. In addition, high trait humor men
viewed the serious lm as more humorous and they were more
comfortable with composing a humorous narrative to the serious lm
than men with low trait humor. In a review of studies examining humor
and appraisal, Martin (1996: 266) suggested that a good sense of humor
is related to more eective coping strategies of individuals via their use
of more realistic cognitive appraisals _
Other studies have linked humor to various strategies for coping with
stress. Borrowing from Freud (1959) and May (1953), Lefcourt et al.
(1995) oered perspective-taking humor as a form of emotion-focused
coping technique designed to distance oneself from negative experiences by taking ones self or ones experiences less seriously, thus reducing
emotional reactions to threatening circumstances. Lefcourt et al. (1995)
found a positive relationship between humor appreciation, one aspect
of perspective-taking humor, and the coping technique of distancing
as measured by Folkman and Lazarus (1985) Ways of Coping Scale

368 M. H. Abel
(Lefcourt et al. 1995). Kuiper et al. (1993) also found the use of humor
as a coping mechanism was positively correlated with the distancing
and confrontive coping subscales of the Ways of Coping Scale indicating
both emotion-focused and problem-focused aspects for dealing with
stress. Lefcourt et al. (1997) subsequently proposed two forms of
coping strategies linked to humor, an emotion-focused coping strategy as
a defensive measure by nding humor in a stressful situation and
reducing negative emotional reactions, and a problem-focused coping
strategy by using humor to alter the stressful situation itself. In support
of humor as an emotion-focused defensive mechanism, Rim (1988)
found signicant relationships between measures of humor and defensive
mechanisms such as minimization, e.g., looking on the bright side of
things, and reversal, e.g., trying to nd something funny in a distressing
situation.
Fry (1995) examined the inuence of sense of humor on cognitive
appraisal of stress and coping styles in a pilot study of female executives.
The results suggested that women with a high sense of humor may be
more capable at cognitive restructuring and reappraising stressful life
events in more positive ways; women with a good sense of humor also
attempted to nd meaning in the stressful events and perceived stressful
events as challenging to their personal growth by anticipating some gain
from the experiences. Finally, McCrae and Costas (1986) sample of
community adults ranging from 21 to 90 years of age ranked the ability to
nd humor in stressful situations as a highly eective coping mechanism
for solving problems and reducing distress associated with stressful life
events.
Purpose of the study
The following study was designed to address the cognitive-aective
shift via cognitive appraisal associated with humor and related coping
strategies. These issues were explored using multiple procedures in
an eort to strengthen conclusions based on the correlational techniques.
Sex of respondent was included in all analyses to explore dierences
between men and women. First, the eects of low and high sense of
humor, assessed by a multidimensional humor measure, and sex of the
participants were examined on perceived stress (cognitive appraisal),
number of everyday problems experienced in the previous two months,
and state anxiety. Based on the assumption that a good sense of humor

Humor, stress, and coping strategies

369

facilitates more positive cognitive appraisals and reduces emotional

reactions to stress, it was hypothesized that participants with a high sense
of humor would report less perceived stress and state anxiety than
participants with a low sense of humor whereas, no dierence for sense of
humor was predicted on the actual number of everyday problems. Women
were expected to report greater perceived stress, number of everyday
problems, and state anxiety than men based on previous research
suggesting women self-report more psychological distress (Mirowsky and
Ross 1995).
Second, coping strategies used by men and women with a low or high
sense of humor were examined. It was hypothesized that participants
with a high sense of humor would use distancing, problem-solving, and
reappraisal as coping strategies, assessed by the revised Ways of Coping
Scale (Folkman et al. 1986), more often than those with a low sense of
humor. Finally, the relationship between number of everyday problems
potentially stressful and perceived stress (cognitive appraisal of stress)
was explored for low and high sense of humor and sex of respondent using
hierarchical multiple regression techniques. If, as Kuiper and Martin
(1998) suggest, individuals with a good sense of humor use more realistic
processing of stressful events, a stronger relationship between perceived
stress and number of everyday problems should exist for the high humor
group than for the low humor group.

Method
Participants
The participants were 258 undergraduate students (113 men, 145 women)
enrolled in introductory psychology courses. The majority (60 percent)
were rst-year students with a mean age of 19.76 years (SD=3.57). The
participants received research credit in their psychology classes.

Measures
The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS; Cohen et al. 1983; Cohen and
Williamson 1988) is a self-report global measure of perceptions of stress.
The scale includes 14 items designed to measure the degree individuals

370 M. H. Abel
cognitively appraise their lives as unpredictable, uncontrollable, and
overloading. Respondents rate how often they experienced a particular
feeling or thought during the past month on a 5-point scale ranging from
never (0) to very often (4). The items are summed for a total perceived
stress score; the higher the score, the higher the perceived stress. The
internal reliability of the scale in this sample was .86 (Cronbach alpha).
The Everyday Problems Scale (EPS; Burks and Martin 1985) lists 34
everyday problems particularly germane to college students. Respondents
check any problem they experienced during the past 2 months. The
endorsed problems are summed, with higher scores indicating a greater
number of everyday problems. The internal reliability of the scale in this
sample was .81 (Cronbach alpha).
The State Anxiety subscale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI;
Spielberger et al. 1970) consists of 20 dierent feelings and mood states.
Respondents mark the degree to which the descriptors apply to them at
that particular moment. The items are rated on a 4-point scale ranging
from 1 (not at all) to 4 (very much so) with higher scores indicating
greater state anxiety. The internal reliability of the subscale was .96 in this
sample (Cronbach alpha).
The Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale (MSHS; Thorson and
Powell 1993) is a self-report measure of overall sense of humor composed
of 24 statements assessing dierent aspects of humor including the use
of humor as a coping mechanism, using humor, and recognizing and
appreciating humor. Respondents indicate the degree to which each
statement applies to them using a scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree)
to 5 (strongly agree). The scores are summed with higher scores indicating
a better sense of humor. The internal reliability of the scale in this sample
was .97 (Cronbach alpha).
A revised Ways of Coping Scale (Folkman et al. 1986) contains 50
statements describing 8 dierent cognitive and behavioral strategies used
to cope with stressful encounters. Respondents are rst asked to consider
the most stressful situation they had experienced in the previous week.
They subsequently respond to each statement in the scale by expressing
the extent to which they used the strategy in coping with that stressful
situation on a 4-point scale from 0 (not used/does not apply) to 3 (used
a great deal). Confrontive coping (6 items) describes hostile and aggressive eorts and risk-taking. Distancing (6 items) is composed of items
describing eorts to distance oneself from the stressful situation. Selfcontrol (7 items) includes eorts to regulate personal feelings and actions.

Humor, stress, and coping strategies

371

Seeking social support (6 items) describes attempts to seek emotional

and informational support. Accepting responsibility (4 items) includes
accepting ones own role in the stressful situation and trying to correct or
better the situation. Escape-avoidance (8 items) describes eorts used
to escape the situation and wishful thinking. Planful problem-solving
(6 items) is composed of problem-focused attempts at coping with or
changing the situation. Positive reappraisal (7 items) includes items that
have a religious tone and create positive meaning while focusing on
personal growth. The items are summed with higher scores representing
greater use of the coping strategy in dealing with the stressful situation.
The internal reliabilities in this sample (Cronbach alphas) for each of
the aforementioned coping strategies were .65, .55, .58, .71, .55, .79, .66,
and .73 respectively.
Procedure
In small groups (10 15), participants received a description of the study,
signed consent forms, and completed each scale in the order presented in
a packet. The scales were randomly ordered in each packet to control
for order eects.
A subsample was selected based on high and low self-reported sense
of humor. Groups with high and low sense of humor were formed by
selecting participants with self-reported sense of humor at 1 SD (12.54) or
greater above and below the overall mean (93.83) on the multidimensional
sense of humor scale. Forty participants were selected for the low sense of
humor group (14 men, 26 women) and 42 participants were selected for
the high sense of humor group (21 men, 21 women). The low humor group
had a mean of 73.50 (SD=8.05) on the sense of humor scale and the high
humor group had a mean of 111.93 (SD=4.34) on the humor scale. The
average age for the subsample was 20.28 (SD=4.24) and the majority
were rst-year students (55 percent).
Results
A 262 Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) was conducted
to examine the eects of sex and sense of humor (low, high) on perceived
stress, number of everyday problems, and state anxiety. Signicant overall
main eects for sex, F(3,75)=4.38, p5.01, and humor, F(3,75)=4.14,

372 M. H. Abel
Table 1. Perceived stress, everyday problems, and state anxiety: Descriptive statistics
Low Humor

High Humor

Men
PSS

Women

26.29
(4.37)

31.58
(8.33)

Men
21.95
(7.26)

29.73
(7.58)
EPS

7.93
(6.27)

11.42
(5.31)

41.07
(11.38)

7.67
(2.67)

11.30
(4.99)
9.44
(4.33)

46.12
(13.51)
44.35
(12.89)

26.19
(9.05)
24.07
(8.38)

10.20
(5.83)
SAI

Women

30.81
(9.72)

37.57
(15.43)
34.19
(13.19)

Note: PSS=Perceived stress, EPS=Everyday problems, SAI=State anxiety. Standard

deviations in parentheses.

p5.01, were found. The sex by humor interaction was not signicant.
Women reported signicantly greater perceived stress, F(1,77)=9.17,
p5.01, number of everyday problems, F(1,77)=10.29, p5.01, and
state anxiety, F(1,77)=4.60, p5.05, than men. The low sense of humor
group reported signicantly greater perceived stress, F(1,77)=6.67,
p5.05, and state anxiety, F(1,77)=9.56, p5.01, than the high sense of
humor group. No dierence was found between low and high sense
of humor on number of everyday problems. (See Table 1 for descriptive
statistics.)
A 262 MANOVA was conducted to examine the eects of sex
and sense of humor (low, high) on the 8 coping strategies. A signicant
overall main eect for sense of humor was found, F(8.71)=2.51, p5.05.
The sex main eect and the sex by humor interaction were not signicant.
The high sense of humor group reported greater use of planful problemsolving, F(1,78)=6.61, p5.05, and positive reappraisal, F(1,78)=12.93,
p5.01, than the low sense of humor group in coping with stress.
Dierences between low versus high sense of humor approached
signicance for distancing oneself, F(1,78)=3.35, p=.07, and self-control,
F(1,78)=3.59, p=.06, with the high sense of humor group reporting
greater use of these strategies than the low sense of humor group. No
signicant dierences were found on confrontive coping using aggressive

Humor, stress, and coping strategies

373

Table 2. Coping strategies: Descriptive statistics

CON
DIS
SELF
SEEK
RESP
ESC
PROB
POS

Low Humor

High Humor

7.78
(3.97)
7.05
(3.59)
9.35
(3.90)
8.05
(4.51)
6.33
(2.83)
11.33
(5.98)
9.90
(3.66)
8.28
(4.22)

8.59
(3.98)
8.71
(3.54)
11.07
(3.81)
9.12
(3.70)
5.83
(3.10)
9.74
(5.68)
12.10
(3.75)
12.02
(4.51)

Note: CON=Confrontive coping; DIS=Distancing oneself; SELF=Self-control; SEEK=

Seeking social support; RESP=Accepting responsibility; ESC=Escape/Avoidance;
PROB=Planful problem-solving; POS=Positive reappraisal. Standard deviations in
parentheses.

eorts to handle stress, seeking social support, accepting responsibility

for the problem, and escape-avoidance of the situation. (See Table 2 for
descriptive statistics.)
Moderated multiple regression analysis (Aiken and West 1991) was
conducted to examine the interaction between sex, sense of humor
(low, high) and number of everyday problems in relation to perceived
stress. Scores on everyday problems were centered, i.e., deviation scores
were used such that the mean of everyday problems was zero, each main
eect and interaction were entered hierarchically into the regression
equation, and unstandardized regression coecients (B) were examined
in the regression equations. No signicant three-way interaction existed
between sex, sense of humor, and everyday problems; step down procedures were employed and each two-way interaction was tested for
its signicant contribution to the regression equation. Sex did not
signicantly interact with the other two variables. The only signicant
interaction existed between sense of humor and everyday problems.
Therefore, sense of humor (0=low sense of humor, 1=high sense of
humor), number of everyday problems, and the interaction were reentered

374 M. H. Abel
Table 3. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses predicting perceived stress
Subsample

Sex
Everyday problems
Sense of humor
Everyday problems6humor

Total sample

R2 Change

R2 Change

.13
.17
.07
.06

11.58**
18.87**
8.16**
8.44**

.11
.18
.01
.02

32.24**
65.98**
5.27*
5.86*

*p5.05, **p5.01.

hierarchically as predictors of perceived stress with sex remaining in the

regression equation to control for the signicant dierences between men
and women in perceived stress. A signicant interaction between sense
of humor and everyday problems accounted for 6 percent of the variance
in perceived stress, F(4,76)=8.44, p5.01, (see Table 3). The relationship between number of everyday problems and perceived stress was
subsequently examined through simple linear regression equations for
each sense of humor group (low, high). Signicant positive relationships
existed between everyday problems and perceived stress for both the
low sense of humor group, B=.41, t(76)=2.30, p5.05, and the high
sense of humor group, B=1.27, t(76)=5.16, p5.01. Simple regression
equations computed at the mean and 1 SD above and below the mean of
everyday problems revealed signicantly greater perceived stress in the
low sense of humor group than in the high sense of humor group for
low number of everyday problems, B=78.67, t(76)=74.17, p5.01, and
average number of everyday problems, B=74.31, t(76)=72.99, p5.01.
No signicant dierence in perceived stress existed between the sense of
humor groups at high number of everyday problems. (See Figure 1.)
Results of the regression analyses in the subsample were checked
against the results in the total sample maintaining the continuity of
the sense of humor measure. The results were virtually identical. No
signicant three-way interaction between sex, sense of humor, and
everyday problems existed. Stepdown procedures were the same as the
previous analyses. The only signicant interaction was between sense of
humor and everyday problems accounting for 2 percent of the variance
in perceived stress, F(1, 253)=5.86, p5.05, (see Table 3). The relationship
between everyday problems and perceived stress were subsequently
examined through simple linear regression at low sense of humor
(computed at 1 standard deviation below the mean) and high sense of

Humor, stress, and coping strategies

375

Figure 1. Simple regression lines showing relationship between number of everyday problems
for low and high sense of humor in the subsample

humor (computed at 1 standard deviation above the mean). Signicant

positive relationships between everyday problems and perceived stress
existed for both low, B=.60, t(253)=4.93, p5.01, and high sense of
humor, B=1.02, t(253)=7.31, p5.01. Simple regression equations
computed at the mean and 1 SD above and below the mean of everyday
problems revealed signicant negative relationships between sense of
humor and perceived stress at low number of everyday problems,
B=7.16, t(253)=73.35, p5.01, and average number of problems,
B=7.08, t(253)=72.30, p5.05. No signicant relationship existed
between humor and perceived stress at high number of everyday problems
(see Figure 2).

Discussion
This study was designed to examine sense of humor as producing a
cognitive-aective shift or restructuring of the situation so that it is
less stressful, with a concomitant release of emotion associated with the
threat and reduction in physiological arousal (Dixon 1980; Martin et al.
1993; Shurcli 1968). In addition, the study explored the coping strategies
used by individuals with a high vs. low sense of humor. The results of this
study clearly support the hypothesized role of humor in the appraisal of
stress and certain coping strategies.

376 M. H. Abel

Figure 2. Simple regression lines showing relationship between number of everyday problems
for low and high sense of humor in the total sample

As predicted, individuals with a high sense of humor cognitively

appraised less stress in the previous month than individuals with a low
sense of humor and reported less current anxiety despite experiencing a
similar number of everyday problems in the previous two months as those
with a low sense of humor. These results support the view that humor
positively aects the appraisal of stressful events and attenuates the
negative aective response, and related to humor producing a cognitiveaective shift and reduction in physiological arousal (Kuiper et al. 1993;
Kuiper et al. 1995; Martin et al. 1993). As found in previous research,
women also self-reported more psychological distress as measured by
their perceived stress, current anxiety, and number of everyday problems
than men (Mirowsky and Ross 1995).
Humor has been linked to several coping strategies such as distancing
oneself from the stressor (Kuiper et al. 1993; Lefcourt et al. 1995),
aggressive eorts toward confronting and dealing with the stress
(Kuiper et al. 1993), and resolving the problems causing stress (McCrae
and Costa 1986). Overall, the results supported the hypothesized eects
of humor on coping strategies. Both men and women with a high sense
of humor were signicantly more likely to use positive coping strategies
such as deliberate eorts at resolving the problem causing stress and
reappraisal of a stressful situation by positively reinterpreting its meaning
for personal growth. Furthermore, individuals with a high sense of humor
exerted more eorts at distancing themselves from the stressful situation
and regulating their personal feelings and actions than individuals with

Humor, stress, and coping strategies

377

a low sense of humor. However, while these dierences for humor on the
distancing strategy were in the expected direction, they only approached
signicance and should be viewed with caution. The signicant results for
positive reappraisal and problem-solving did fully support Lefcourts
et al. (1997) suggestion that humor is linked to both emotion-focused
and problem-focused coping strategies (see also Fry 1995).
Finally, as predicted, the regression analyses in both a subsample and
the total sample of participants revealed stronger positive relationships
between number of everyday problems and cognitive appraisal of stress
for those with a high sense of humor regardless of sex. The weaker
relationship between number of everyday problems and appraisal of
stress for the group with a low sense of humor occurred because this
group appraised signicantly higher stress at low and average number of
everyday problems than the group with a high sense of humor, whereas
no dierence existed at high number of problems. A positive relationship
would be expected between the number of problems experienced and the
cognitive appraisal of stress as revealed by both the low and high humor
groups. However, the signicantly greater perceived stress for the low
humor group at low and average number of problems signicantly
attenuated this relationship. Consequently, the results support the suggestion that individuals with a good sense of humor more accurately
and realistically appraise the stress in their lives than those with a poor
sense of humor (Kuiper and Martin 1998; Martin 1996). It appears
that individuals with a poor sense of humor may either overestimate the
appraisal of stress in their lives or perhaps are more predisposed to
psychologically experience greater stress regardless of the number of
stressful life events, a characteristic of neuroticism. Several studies have
revealed negative relationships between measures of sense of humor and
neuroticism suggesting that individuals with a poor sense of humor also
score higher on neuroticism (see Deaner and McConatha 1993; Ruch
and Kohler 1998; Thorson et al. 1997).
In conclusion, the results support ndings from other studies that
used dierent procedures, revealing the signicance of humor in cognitive
appraisal of stress, the cognitive-aective shift produced by humor, and
the relationships between sense of humor and certain coping strategies.
In contrast to previous research, this study specically examined the
moderating eect of humor in the relationship between cognitive appraisal
of stress and actual number of stressful events, highlighting the merit of
Kuipers et al. (1995) suggestion that sense of humor should be considered

378 M. H. Abel
an individual dierence variable inuencing relationships between stress,
appraisal, and outcomes. While this study used multiple procedures in an
attempt to strengthen support for the ndings, certain limitations remain.
No causal relationships can be implied due to the correlational nature of
the study. In addition, use of college students as participants is always
in question when generalizing results to the total population, and the
everyday problems used to measure stressful life events were restricted to
problems particularly experienced by college students. Hence, further
research should assess stressful life events in an adult population to
determine whether these results remain valid. Finally, sense of humor is
a multidimensional construct and was assessed in this study using a
multidimensional measure. A promising area of research could focus on
determining the specic dimensions of sense of humor most inuential
in the cognitive appraisal of stress.
Western Carolina University
Notes
Correspondence address: Millicent H. Abel, Department of Psychology, Western Carolina
University, Cullowhee, NC 28723; abel@wcu.edu
The author gratefully acknowledges the major contributions of Amanda Gibson, Kimberly
Guey, and April Watts in the data collection procedures.

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